Sleep Safe in a Toxic World: Your Guide to Identifying and Removing Hidden Toxins from Your Bedroom

Advance Praise

Because children spend over half their time in bed, one of the most important gifts you can give them is a safe and healthy one. Bader provides credible evidence that will change how you view where your child sleeps, as well as answers for finding the safest options.

—Janelle Sorensen, Chief Communications Officer,

Healthy Child Healthy World

"Sleep Safe reminds us of the health risks we face every day from environmental toxins and shocks us with their proximity. The chemicals found in your mattress, as with so many consumer products, are being camouflaged in greenwashing. This book will open your eyes to better choices that will steer you towards a safer, healthier lifestyle."

—David Steinman, author of Safe Trip to Eden, Diet for a Poisoned Planet and co-author of The Safe Shopper’s Bible: A Consumer’s Guide to Nontoxic Household Products, Cosmetics, and Food

It was a profoundly disturbing revelation to learn about the extent of our chemical exposure during sleep as a result of outgassing from elements used in the manufacturing of mattresses and bedding. As many of us strive to make healthier, less toxic choices in our everyday lives it becomes common sense, after reading Walter’s book, that one of the most important places to start the transition is in our own bedroom, where we spend up to a third of our lives sleeping. Armed with the information Walter provides, it is easy to reduce our exposure to these toxins and carcinogens by simply replacing our current choices with healthier alternatives.

—Leanne Meyers, Environmental Activist,,

CEO Prana Entertainment Group

Copyright© 2007,

2011 First edition 2007

Second edition 2011

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted electronically without authorized consent of the Freedom Press.

Disclaimer: The material in this presentation is for informational purposes only and not intended for the treatment or diagnosis of individual disease. Please visit a qualified medical or other health professional for specifically diagnosing any ailments mentioned or discussed in detail in this material.

Book design by Bonnie Lambert

Cover design by Emily Kelley

ISBN: 978-1-893910-90-4

Printed in the U.S.A.

Published by Freedom Press

120 North Topanga Canyon Boulevard

Topanga, CA90290

Bulk Orders Available: (800) 959-9797

E-mail: info@freedompressonline.com

Dedicated to everyone striving to reduce their daily

exposures to chemicals in our increasingly toxic world.

Acknowledgements

WHERE DOES ONE BEGIN to acknowledge all the people who have influenced our education and perspectives? If they were alive today, I would personally thank Rachel Carson, whose book Silent Spring first alerted me to the seriousness of air and water pollution, and people like Dr. Theron Randolph, who tried valiantly to make the public aware of the health risks associated with chemical exposures in the early 1950s. Both wrote books in 1962 that changed my life.

I would also like to thank Sylvia Seymour, whose tireless proofing was indispensable, as well as my brother, Dr. Myles Bader, who gave me encouragement and a great example to follow.

Finally, I would like to recognize the value of the thousands of consumers whose questions over the years directed me to find answers to the issues they were trying so hard to define in an effort to protect their health and the health of their families. Their questions taught me a great deal.

CONTENTS

Foreword by Athena Thompson

Preface

Introduction

PART 1

The Toxic Soup: Chemicals and Your Health

Chapter One

The Body Burden and the Burden of Proof

Chapter Two

When Did Mattresses Become So Chemical?

Chapter Three

Is Your Mattress Safe? (How Long Can You Hold Your Breath?)

Chapter Four

Your Chemical Bedroom

PART 2

The Information Void

Chapter Five

The Politics of Chemicals and Public Health

Chapter Six

Mattress Flammability

Chapter Seven

Beware, Greenwashers

Chapter Eight

How to Shop for an Organic Mattress

Final Thoughts

Appendix 1

Bed Bugs and Dust Mites: Which One Bites?

Appendix 2

About the Pesticides NOT in Certified Organic Cotton

Appendix 3

Suggested Reading

Appendix 4

Websites

References

Index

About the Author

Foreword

ONE OF THE MOST FREQUENT QUESTIONS I am asked when people consult with me about how to make their homes healthier places to live in is about bedrooms and, in particular, about beds. What is a healthy bed? Are healthy beds really that important? What’s the healthiest bed? Are they worth the investment? Where do you buy one? Is organic really better? What about memory-foam beds—are they any good? That’s why I am so delighted Walt Bader wrote this book. Now I can refer people to this goldmine of information that answers all these questions.

I first discovered Walt and his company, Lifekind®, several years ago on the Internet while doing research for my book, Homes That Heal. I was looking for the best organic bed and bedding and was really impressed with the full disclosure Lifekind gave on all their products. I remember thinking, Finally! Someone is doing it right! With so much green-washing going on today, where businesses try to make themselves look more environmentally friendly than they really are and deceive consumers with misleading claims about the all-natural wholesomeness of their products, it’s increasingly difficult to find companies with vision and integrity providing genuine organic products and great customer service. Walt now brings the same vision and integrity that goes into Lifekind to this book.

The good news is that people are beginning to realize that the health of their home impacts the health of their family. Often the difference between a healthy and a toxic home is simply decided by the consumer choices we make. The bad news is that there are so many poor quality and toxic consumer products on the market, and the everyday person has no way of knowing what they are exposing themselves to. Labels and product ingredient lists rarely show all the dangerous chemicals that can go into making a product.

Thankfully, Walt decided to share his extensive research on beds and compile it into a book so it could be made available to the general public. Contained within these pages you will find a multitude of facts, scientifically valid studies and never-before-available laboratory test results revealing the chemical composition of several popular types of mattresses (such as memory foam). This book is essentially a full disclosure on the hidden truth about beds.

What is so important about bedrooms and beds? As Walt points out, on average we spend about a third of our life in bed. Children, the elderly and sick spend even more time there. According to the National Sleep Foundation, 50 to 70 million Americans (including children) suffer from intermittent sleep disorders, 40 million of which have chronic sleep problems. Sleep is not merely a time out from our busy routines; it is essential for good health, mental and emotional functioning, and safety. Sleep is when the body detoxes and heals itself. Anything that impairs our ability to sleep properly or our quality of sleep has significant impacts on the other two-thirds of our life. What most people don’t realize is that the actual bed you sleep in can be the cause of many of these problems.

Sleep Safe points out that while your mattress label may tell you what your mattress is made of, it does not tell you what those materials are made from. Why would you want to know this? Because many commonly used mattress materials are a chemical nightmare. Polyurethane foam, for example, is made from a base of petrochemicals combined with a staggering array of additional chemical ingredients used as stabilizers, catalysts, surfactants, fire retardants, colorants, and blowing agents. Each of these chemicals is associated with a host of environmental problems as well as numerous human health hazards, such as chronic bronchitis, reduced lung function, breathlessness, nausea, vomiting and various allergic reactions. Some are even listed as potential carcinogens and reproductive toxins.

People also report experiencing restless sleep, frequent waking, insomnia, and waking feeling foggy in the morning after sleeping on certain mattresses. Though these latter effects may not be considered life-threatening, they can certainly ruin a person’s productivity and quality of life. So if you are sleeping on a mattress or pillow containing materials such as polyurethane foam, you may be breathing in and absorbing through your skin these various chemicals all night, every night, as they offgas from the product. And what’s more, offgassing may continue, to some degree, indefinitely for the product’s entire lifetime. Why is the consumer not warned about any of this? I, for one, would want to know!

If you care about your health, it’s important to learn about what you are sleeping on. Walt’s lucid and comprehensive explanations will help you understand just how many layers of potentially hazardous chemicals you and your family are being exposed to each night. And it’s not just your mattress. Add to the equation foundations which often contain the same chemicals as the mattress, sheets and blankets made of synthetic fibers or pesticide-laden natural fibers treated with additional chemicals for our no-need-to-iron convenience, and top it all off with fragranced and chemical laundry products. One can only conclude that many manufacturers have no real concern about what is in their products.

Toxic emissions from bedroom chemicals can be one of our most significant sources of daily exposure to pollution and the cause of countless maladies. Yet, when was the last time your doctor or health care professional asked you what you sleep on at night? I believe beds are one of the single-most overlooked culprits in people’s (and especially children’s) health problems. What if your child’s frequent waking at night, inability to concentrate at school, or temper tantrums are because he is sleeping on a toxic bed? What if you are needlessly medicating your child when what she really needs is a few good nights’ sleep on a healthy bed?

Some people may argue that they don’t experience any noticeable negative reactions to their beds. Even so, you are still being exposed, and these low-level exposures over a long period of time can wreak havoc with your health. So do make sure you give your doctor or health care professional a copy of this book next time you see them, and ask them to review this valuable information.

Mixed throughout these pages you will also find plenty of great advice, such as how to shop for an organic mattress. No one had ever explained this to me before, and it makes so much sense. By the end of this book you will have learned everything you need to know about beds to become an informed consumer. You will also know where to begin to make your bedroom a much healthier environment to sleep in. There is everything to gain and nothing to lose as you discover for yourself the many benefits of a truly great night’s sleep.

Finally, on a personal note, I began switching my family over to organic beds several years ago. I was not able to do it all at once, so I did it gradually. First I changed my family’s pillows to organic wool and organic cotton. Then I changed everyone’s bedding over to certified organic cotton: pillowcases, sheets, duvet covers. All of this felt wonderful to do and gave me more peace of mind at night. However, the most significant difference came when we got rid of our expensive, popular brand-name mattress and replaced it with a true organic one. That first night’s sleep was blissful and I have not looked back since.

May you and your loved ones enjoy great health, wonderful sleep, and all the benefits this book offers.

—Athena Thompson

Building Biologist

Author of Homes That Heal

Preface

IF YOU WANT TO SEE ME SNEEZE, just give me a peppermint. As a young boy, some of my food allergies seemed funny. But it became less of a laughing matter as I got older and my allergies continued to worsen. By the time I was seven or eight, I could not walk down the laundry products aisle in the supermarket without my eyes tearing and burning. I was never too excited when my parents took me into the large toy store in town because it smelled horrible and made me feel dizzy.

Not everyone took my complaints seriously. After all, the first book about individuals with reactions to the chemicals in their environment wasn’t even written until I was in college (Dr. Theron Randolph, Human Ecology and Susceptibility to the Chemical Environment, 1962). Like many of my generation, I was raised at a time when TV commercials promoted Better Living Through Chemistry. DDT was sprayed throughout my local neighborhood to control mosquito populations, and great new products were being introduced made out of a wonder chemical product called plastic. Basically, I survived my youth by submitting to countless scratch tests and injections to desensitize my allergies, and avoiding all the products and places